


The Dragon Recruit

by hangstzo



Series: McCree and Friends [2]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Blackwatch Era, Blackwatch Genji Shimada, Blackwatch Jesse McCree, Don't get attached to the oc, Gen, Light Angst, Nightmares, Original Character Death(s), Pre-Fall of Overwatch, Protective Jesse McCree, Tired Gabe, angsty genji, gabe is a dad, there's like no relationships tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-22
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-12-05 11:09:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11576850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hangstzo/pseuds/hangstzo
Summary: Genji is lost, Jesse is confused, and Gabriel just wants one goddamn mission to go according to plan.





	1. One

The first time Jesse properly met Genji Shimada was during Blackwatch training. He was sparring with O’Connor when Gabe walked in, followed by the kid he had last seen screaming in the medical wing. The distraction allowed his partner to knock him to the ground, winning their match. He groaned and got back onto his feet, glaring at her. “C’mon doll, that wasn’t fair!”

O’Connor snorted, shifting her weight to the balls of her feet. “Fights aren’t fair, ya langer. You were distracted.” Match finished, she glanced over her shoulder at Gabe and the new recruit, who were talking quietly by the door. She whistled. “Pretty nice distraction though McCree.”

“Wasn’t distracted.”

**(Jesse wasn’t huffing)**

O’Connor nudged him. “Look, your distraction’s coming over.”

Gabe made his way over, Genji in tow, and nodded at the pair. “Jesse, Caoimhe. This is Genji, can one of you show him around?” He was always kinder to the new recruits at first, usually trying to make sure they had someone to talk to. That was how Jesse had met the ever annoying O’Connor, who was now determined to beat him in absolutely anything and everything. She even ate faster than him, but could never beat his record on the firing range. No one could.

“Well, McCree just lost the match so he should do the newbie tour!” O’Connor slapped her hand on his shoulder, a winning smile on her face. “He is the best at it anyway.” Jesse glared daggers at her as Gabe pulled him off and her smile widened. “Enjoy your distraction Jesse!”

**(He hated that girl)**

Genji was silent nearly the whole time as Jesse pointed out all the important parts of the Swiss base. Between showing him the official parts of the base and all his secret places, including the best place to hide, he stole glances at the new boy. He had barely seen him when he had checked in on Angie, more distracted by how exhausted his friend looked, but Gabe had said something about him going through ‘cyberisation’. Jesse just hadn’t realised how extensive it had been. 

Genji was almost completely made of metal with various red tubes coming in and out of the armour. His left arm remained uncovered, but marred by large scars. Only his eyes were uncovered by a sort of facial plate, which also had several red tubes connecting it to what looked like a rebuilt spinal cord. The most freaky thing about the kid were those eyes. They were red. Jesse could feel anger coming off the kid in waves and it was unsettling him. Part of him wished Gabe hadn’t left to go see Morrison or whatever it was he was doing.

**(On second thoughts, it was probably Morrison that he was doing)**

“Take a picture, it lasts longer.” 

The almost robotic voice startled Jesse back from his thoughts. He turned around to find Genji glaring him, arms crossed. Jesse did his best not to blush, failed, and then cleared his throat. “Sorry darlin’. I’m jus’ thinkin’ ‘bout somethin’. Anyway, this is the common room-”

Genji sighed, or at least Jesse was pretty sure it sounded like a sigh, before walking up to him. He was a fair bit shorter than the cowboy, probably preventing him from being as threatening as he intended. “I am not interested in where everything is on this base. I would rather you show me to my room and leave me alone.”

“Whoa there.” Jesse held up his hands, trying his best to keep a good distance from the threatening ninja. “I was headin’ to the dorms now. You’re next to me, Blackwatch is all close together.”

Genji didn't look pleased about that. “Fantastic,” his voice was deadpan. “Show me the way.”

\---

Jesse’s nightmares often had him waking in a cold sweat, backing up against the wall in a blind panic or, on his worst days, paralysed in sheer fear. In Deadlock he learned the hard way not to make a sound after his bad dreams, no one wanted to show any signs of weakness. His dreams never really made much sense but they terrified him nonetheless. By the time he had joined Blackwatch he had just accepted the dreams as something he needed to get used to. During his first overnight mission, Jesse was woken by a very worried Gabe shaking him. “ _Dios mío_ , Jesse, are you okay?”

“Sure, _jefe_ , jus’ a nightmare.”

“ _Just_ a nightmare? You’ve been shaking for the last hour.”

For a while after that, Gabe sat with him at breakfast, trying to coax him into eating. Nightmares always made him feel nauseous and wrong, for once putting him off his food. It took a long time for Jesse to accept his constant offers of help. That took a weight off his shoulders. 

**(He still had nightmares. He just knew how to deal with them quietly now)**

Jesse was a light sleeper, a trait handy for missions but less useful for being on base. The slightest noise triggered his defensive instincts, startling him awake. This was what was currently happening. A high pitched whimper came through the wall, quiet at first, then getting louder until it became a wail. At that point Jesse couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed a shirt and headed to the next room. 

“Genji?” He knocked on the door as quietly as he could. O’Connor had the room opposite and if she found out he was trying to get into the Shimada’s room then he'd never hear the end of it. There wasn’t any answer from inside as the cries continued. Jesse knocked again, louder this time. “Genji? You okay darlin’?”

Genji never came to the door, but his cries were still audible. He was speaking too, but it was all in Japanese and the only word Jesse could recognise was ‘soba’ which he was pretty sure was a kind of noodle. Why was he crying about noodles at one in the morning? 

**(Jesse would be a liar if he said he hadn't drunkenly cried over the thought of noodles late at night at least once)**

The next night, Genji's cries were more desperate. It was really starting to hurt Jesse's heart to hear a teammate in such obvious distress. When his concerns went unanswered again, he sought out the big guns. 

“Gabe, what happened to Genji?”

Jesse often found himself in Gabe's office when he had nothing to do, lazing on his sofa and bothering him. His commander looked over at him from his paperwork and sighed. “I’m pretty sure that's classified information _mijo_.”

Jesse waved his hand, sitting up. “He’s not doin’ well sir, I keep hearin’ him cryin’ at night. It’s in Japanese an’ I don’t get it.” Seeing Gabe's look of concern encouraged him to go on. “He’s just... really sad. I don’t think he's been sleepin’ at all.”

**(The look on his face told Jesse that he had won)**

With a groan, Gabe put down his pen and came over to sit beside him. “The agents we’ve got staking out the Shimada castle brought him in. There had been some kind of fight between him and his brother and Genji’s very lucky to be alive. That’s really all I can tell you.”

“He keeps going on about soba.” This was what was confusing Jesse more than anything else. “Those are noodles, ain’t they? Does he miss Japan or somethin’?”

Gabe titled his head, looking thoughtful. “Did I tell you all the legends about the Shimadas?” Seeing Jesse's confused look he continued. “Obviously not. They say they’re descended from dragons and that gives them... powers of some kind. The heirs have these sort of spirit dragons that they can control and use in battle. Postác swears she saw this weird blue and green lights when Genji was attacked-”

“Are you kiddin’ me here _viejo_?" Jesse was putting two and two together. “Yer tellin’ me that we’ve got a recruit who’s a _dragon_?” 

**(Jesse was putting two and two together and getting six)**

The incredulous stare and laugh from the older man told him that he wasn’t exactly right. “No, you idiot, he just _might_ be able to summon one.” Gabe rolled his eyes and stood up, holding his hand out to him. “Just keep an eye on him _mijo._ Now, you’re dismissed. Don’t you have sparring with O’Connor again?

Jesse groaned and grabbed Gabe’s hand to pull himself up. “Please, can’t I jus’ take one day off from her? I’ll look after the dragon guy!”

“Go on Jesse.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRANSLATIONS  
> Dios mío- Spanish, 'my god'  
> Jefe- Spanish, 'boss'  
> Mijo- Spanish, 'son'  
> Viejo- Spanish, 'old man'  
> Langer- my favourite Irish insult
> 
> I didn't intend for O'Connor's name to be alliterative but it happened. Also in my head she's from Cork which makes it even worse.
> 
> EDIT: DID I PREDICT THE IRISH BLACKWATCH HERO?? FUCK YEAH I DID


	2. Two

Jesse’s first mission with Genji was eventful to say the least. A small Blackwatch team had been dispatched to Europe to keep an eye on an attempted uprising with strict orders to keep a “low profile”. If things were to go wrong then they were to intervene in the least destructive way. Rumours of Overwatch’s less than pristine black ops division were making the rounds again and Gabe always tried to keep their missions as quiet as possible when that happened. 

**(But when did things ever go smoothly for Gabriel Reyes?)**

It started off well. O’Connor found herself a sniper’s perch above the empty town square, ready to take out the revolution’s leader if needed. Jesse was on the ground, blending into the crowd, Genji by his side. Gabe had paired the two of them up, finally rescuing Jesse from O’Connor, probably so that his experience would rub off on him. The cyborg had done his best to cover his armour in a familiar looking jumper that was about two sizes too big and a pair of Jesse’s joggers that he must have stolen from the laundry room. His swords were stashed in a canvas bag, something he had objected to, which sat at his feet as he leaned against the wall. With no Gabe or Angela to lecture him about it, Jesse lit up a cigarette.

“Those things will kill you, you know,” Genji said from behind, sounding thoughtful. Jesse spun around, pointing at him accusingly. The ninja laughed, shaking his head. “I’m joking. I used to smoke all the time. When I had a working mouth anyway.”

Jesse stared, dumbfounded. “You- _you_ just made a joke?”

“I’ve been told I’m a funny person!” Genji crossed his arms and laughed, or at least it sounded like a laugh. “I must apologise for my behaviour, I have been-”

An explosion interrupted him, followed by O’Connor’s frantic voice in Jesse’s comm. “I’ve been compromised! Shooters on the roof, I repeat, shooters on the roof!” There was rapid gunfire on the other end of the line accompanied by ferocious swearing.

Jesse and Genji reached for their weapons as the streets flooded with shooters all dressed in black. “So much for keepin’ things quiet,” he muttered to himself, grabbing Peacekeeper and loading her up. Genji sighed from beside him, pulling off the jumper and attaching his swords to his armour. He fired a few shurikens at the wall as a test, then nodded to Jesse. The cowboy grinned back. “This life’s never uneventful, huh Gen?”

The Blackwatch team attacked at once, perfectly synchronised as they had been taught. O’Connor remained on the roof, picking off as many of the attackers as she could get to, yelling increasingly obscure Irish insults at them. Their enemies outnumbered them by at least a dozen men but the team was fast and clearly better trained. They weaved between them, Jesse emptying his rounds into them, Genji burying shurikens in their bodies, and O’Connor sniping them from the roof. It wasn’t a fair fight, but that was the way fights always were.

**(They were winning)**

Then there was a scream. Jesse’s head snapped up just in time to see O’Connor being shoved off a roof by one of the shooters. Time seemed to slow as she frantically flailed for something to hold onto, missing every possible ledge as she fell. Jesse broke from the team, running towards her, shooting down her attacker as he desperately tried to get to her in time.

Caoimhe O’Connor hit the ground with a crack and was still.

Jesse stared at the girl in disbelief, before whirling around to aim at the enemies on the roof. “Step right up,” he said, lining up the shot. He steadied his shaking hand, slowed his breathing, and fired six shots. Six bodies dropped, sliding down the roof. 

“McCree!” Genji’s voice came over the comms link, breathless. “Is O’Connor…”

“She’s gone.” Jesse cleared his throat and reloaded Peacekeeper. “Broke her neck, prob’ly painless. The bastards on the roof are down an’ I’m coming back into the mix so jus’ hold on a sec.”

“Could you… Maybe wait a little while.” Genji sounded nervous, something that wasn’t normal for him. “I’m going to try something and I don’t know how predictable it will be or even if it will work. I don’t want any one else to get hurt today.” Jesse frowned, looking over at the fight. He spotted Genji deflecting bullets with a sword and generally looking badass. The cyborg made eye contact with him and nodded. “Blackwatch, get down!”

The team considered the order for a moment, obviously confused, before dropping to the floor. The rebels also hesitated, giving Genji the perfect window to do whatever the hell it was he was planning. Jesse busied himself with moving O’Connor’s body out of the line of sight, picking her up as gently as he could. Her eyes were still open.

There was the unmistakeable sound of a sword being drawn and Jesse turned back to watch Genji take out the katana he rarely used and hold it up. Bringing it down, he shouted, “ _Ryūjin no ken o kurae_!” There was an unearthly roar and a flash of green as the ninja darted between the enemies, striking them and knocking them to the ground. Within seconds, all of them were dead. Genji sheathed the katana and stood there, alone surrounded by bodies.

**(The fight was won and the mission over. Unfortunately it had been the exact opposite of ‘low profile’)**

Slowly, the Blackwatch agents got back up to their feet, heads turned to Genji in disbelief. The man was _beaming,_ almost laughing to himself as he stood like an angel of death amidst their fallen enemies. Jesse was about to go over to him when Gabe suddenly began tiredly speaking through the comms line. “You have ten minutes until the jet gets there. During that time, work out something to say to Morrison, who is _very_ pleased with how _quiet_ this mission was.”

\---

The jet back to base was full of tension. Jesse and a few of the other agents were sitting by O’Connor’s body in silent mourning. Genji sat alone in a corner, still giddy. He could feel Soba once again. The dragon was settled in his chest, curling around his heart, and for the first time since the attack he felt truly like a human again. A part of him had been missing for so long he had almost forgotten what it had been like. During the battle he had felt strange, almost tingly, as if he was running on adrenaline the entire time. He had to get that energy out somehow.

When he told Blackwatch to get down, Genji hadn’t fully realised what he was doing. He knew he could take out most of the attackers with a few well-timed strikes and that’s what he had intended to do. As he unsheathed the katana, the Japanese came out on instinct. It was a command he had learned to use since he started training. He hadn’t even realised it would summon Soba and didn’t notice the spirit dragon until he brought the sword down, ready to attack. It had been a shock to see the familiar green streak as he sliced through the attackers but he soon relaxed back into working with his dragon.

By the time their enemies were dead on the ground Genji was almost bouncing with the delight of having Soba back. Still there was this fear that as soon as he sheathed the katana the dragon would leave him again. But once the sword was safely back in the holder, Soba settled right back where it always had been-just above Genji’s heart. He was grinning widely, excitement surging through his veins, delighted to have his dragon back where it belonged. Around him, his teammates were getting to their feet, giving him wary looks. Even Jesse, who he had just started to like, looked at him in fear. No one said a word to him as they headed back to the jet, Reyes’ sharp words still ringing in their ears.

**(Genji would take the blame for the lack of subtlety in their mission. He did attack with a bright green dragon after all)**

“Hey Gen.” Jesse sat down beside him with a groan, rubbing at the messy bandage on his leg. He turned to stare at him, head tilted. “So. You’ve got a secret weapon.” Genji smiled in return, tapping his nose and Jesse rolled his eyes. “Come on. Show us.”

Genji laughed. “It’s not something I can just bring out and show-”

As if on cue, Soba materialised on his shoulder, chirping curiously at Jesse. The cowboy nearly fell off his chair, the sudden movement startling the dragon and it wrapped itself around his neck. Genji smiled and gently lifted the spirit off his shoulders, letting it settle on his legs. “This is Soba, my spirit dragon.”

Jesse blinked a few times and Genji could practically hear the cogs whirring in his head as he tried to process what was going on. Then he slowly lifted a hand and looked back to the ninja. “Can I touch him?” Genji nodded, watching as he carefully held his palm out to the dragon. Soba looked up at its master for any help with what to do in this situation before hesitantly moving over to Jesse’s outstretched hand, sniffing his fingers. Eventually it chirped happily and moved over to the cowboy’s lap, pawing at his belt buckle. Jesse laughed and gently stroked its spines. “He’s cute! Wait, is it a he or a she?”

“It’s a dragon,” Genji replied, then grinned. “And it has decided it wants your belt buckle.”

Jesse looked down just in time to see Soba successfully remove his buckle and scamper off under the seats opposite them. “Hey! You damn critter, give that back!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The three genders- male, female and dragon  
> Hello, I love the Shimada noodle dragons and Gabe being very done with his idiot Blackwatch agents. Hanzo is gonna briefly be in the next chapter, my favourite angsty archer.


	3. Three

Jesse and Genji had been lazing on the floor of the common room, the heat of the afternoon sun sucking the energy out of them, when Genji broke the news. “I’m leaving,” he had said, watching Soba twist in the air above them trying to catch dust swirling in the light. “I have no purpose in Overwatch now. I’ve taken down what was left of the Shimada clan.”

**(They left the obvious unsaid. Hanzo Shimada was still out there, somewhere)**

Jesse just sighed and nodded. Things hadn’t been the same for him either since Ana died. Gabe spent his days locked in his office, only coming out to give orders for missions that were doomed to fail. The atmosphere between him and Morrison was frosty and their moods fed into the relationship between the Overwatch and Blackwatch divisions. There were more frequent fights between them and the public were getting dangerously close to finding out the extent of what really happened behind the scenes of their beloved Overwatch. Jesse had had enough of it. “I’m thinkin’ of leavin’too Gen.” The words almost physically hurt him to say. “’S all goin’ to shit, ain’t it.”

**(One week later, Genji was gone. Within a month, Jesse resigned and after three months, Overwatch had been shut down and Reyes and Morrison were dead)**

\---

Jesse had done his best to keep in contact with Genji in the years since they had left Overwatch as regularly as he could. They wrote letters to each other in code, a skill they had kept up since their Blackwatch days as it was less likely that they would give away their location. Genji’s letters were always lengthy and detailed, telling stories of his time with the Shambali monks and how he had become the student of one called Zenyatta, who Jesse rather liked the sound of. On the other hand, the cowboy’s letters were short and usually illegible. He had been left handed before he lost that arm and had never really got used to writing with his right hand or the prosthetic. His letters always ended with an apology for the mess of it and where he was most likely to be next.

When he rejoined Overwatch, Jesse hadn’t expected Genji to answer the recall at all. The cyborg had made his feelings about the organisation pretty clear in their letters. Jesse had listed his address as Gibraltar in the last letter he had written to him and now, three months later, he had not gotten a reply. He assumed his friend hadn’t approved of the development and cut off contact. He missed him. 

The base was practically empty. The new recruits had gone into town for more supplies, Lena was sorting out her affairs in London and Winston was holed up in his office, sending out invitations to new recruits. A few were set to arrive in the next week or so but Jesse hadn’t been listening to their names. He constantly reminded Winston about looking into recruiting Fareeha but the scientist waved him off with a promise that he would “get to it”.

To tell the truth, Jesse was _bored_. He spent the bulk of his time wandering the base and the surroundings, chatting to Athena, or training in the empty gyms. Mostly, he slept. It had been so long since he had had a bed to call his own, let alone a damn comfortable one. He needed to catch up on all the sleep he had been missing out on.

**(All the alcohol he drank was also helping with his sleep)**

“Agent McCree.”

Jesse had been lying upside down on the sofa in the common room when Athena’s voice rang out through the empty room. He sat up, moaning slightly at the sudden headrush, and cleared his throat. “Yeah darlin’, what’s happening?”

“Agent Oxton wants me to inform you that she will be landing in approximately three minutes along with former Blackwatch agent Genji Shimada.”

He was on his feet and running towards the landing strip before Athena even finished her sentence. 

When Jesse eventually arrived at the hangar, breathless and cursing whoever invented cigarettes, Lena’s ship was just touching down. He saw the girl in the cockpit and raised his hand in a sort of half wave, half salute. She returned the salute, before turning to talk to someone behind her, who remained unseen to him. The jet wobbled as she did so and Jesse chuckled to himself. The girl had always been so careless. She quickly regained control, looking like she was laughing, and landed the jet. 

**(Jesse was suddenly very nervous)**

He didn't have the time to consider changing his mind about greeting Genji because as soon as the plane opened its door, a flash of green dashed out, heading straight for Jesse. He laughed as Soba circled him, chirping excitedly. “Whoa there critter,” he smiled, stroking the little dragon, “Did ya miss me?” The spirit playfully nipped at his finger in response. 

“Jesse McCree!”

Jesse spun around to see his favourite cyborg standing in front of him. His faceplate was still on but he could hear the grin in Genji's voice. Why did he ever worry about him hating him? He walked over to his friend, returning the grin. “Genji Shimada. It's been a while.”

Genji laughed and hugged him, clapping a metal hand a little too hard against Jesse's shoulder. “It is good to see you again my friend.” He pulled back and Jesse could feel his eyes examining him before the cyborg continued, “Still clinging to the cowboy thing?”

“You lil-” Movement from the door triggered Jesse's senses and he spun around, hand to Peacekeeper's holster. Two figures emerged from the jet, distracting him from his friend. The first was an Omnic who seems to be-was he _hovering_? He was dressed in simple robes and around his neck are several hovering balls. 

**(Jesse had seen a lot of weird things in his life, but this is up there)**

“This is my master,” Genji said, helping Jesse focus again, “Tekhartha Zenyatta.”

Zenyatta bowed his head and waved to him. “Greetings. Genji has told me much about you.” Soba floated over to the Omnic, chirping peacefully as it began to try to attack one of the orbs. 

Jesse nodded in return, smiling, and tipped his hat. “Howdy. Hopefully he's told ya jus’ the good things.” A soft sigh distracted him again and he turned back to the jet where the other, more human, figure stood in the shadows. He didn't need to be introduced for Jesse to know exactly who this was. “Genji, I love you, but why’s yer brother who tried to _kill you_ here?”

Hanzo Shimada looked away from them, fidgeting with the bag slung over his shoulder, looking uncomfortable and rightly so. Jesse could shoot him dead in less than a second and he’d never see it coming. His hand hovered back over his holster, glaring daggers at the other man. No, he wasn’t even a man, he didn’t deserve that. He had seen Genji when Blackwatch brought him in, had heard his screams when he woke up, had calmed him down frequently after the nightmares. The man who caused his friend all that pain stood in front of him. 

**(It was a good thing Angela wasn’t in Gibraltar yet, she definitely wouldn't hesitate to shoot Hanzo)**

“Jesse." Genji took his shoulder, removing his visor. There were the slightest lines around his eyes, blending into the scars, the scars that Hanzo had caused. “I have forgiven my brother. He has come to join Overwatch.”

Jesse stared at him, struggling to find words as he looked between the two brothers. It looked like Genji meant it, though it was difficult to tell when you can only see someone’s eyes. Hanzo still avoided eye contact but he was stiff, tension radiating off him in waves. It didn't look like he was a danger but he could snap at any moment, he could kill them all. If he attacked his brother so viciously, what would stop him from killing the Overwatch members? 

But somewhere in Jesse's heart wanted to give the man a second chance. He was a merciful man, when he wanted to be. Besides, Genji seemed to trust Hanzo and it was rare that the cyborg put his trust in anyone. With a groan, Jesse extended his hand towards the man. “The name's McCree. Nice to meet ya.”

Hanzo looked up, head tilted slightly, and took his hand, shaking it firmly. “Shimada Hanzo,”he replied, still avoiding eye contact but the close proximity gave Jesse the chance to examine him properly. He looked similar to Genji but... sadder. There was a dullness in his eyes and frown lines around his mouth. Despite that, and Jesse hated himself for thinking this, he was a damn handsome bastard. 

“Welcome to Overwatch, Shimada.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure about this chapter, it all seemed a little ooc to me but eh, it brings in my fave angsty archer. Thanks for reading and you can find me at [my tumblr](http://picturefirelizards.tumblr.com/).


End file.
